Tennessee Jedi wrote:I wish my job was playing Dead every night to people who wanted to hear it with people who love playing it.
Its probably overrated though....
Jeez
a whole $ 10 bucks to have a good time with some friends ....

Good One!... Me too.
Although I know, having toured in several bands throughout the 80's and 90's, that, for me, it's a huge pain in the ass to have to kill 18 or so hours a day just to play two sets of music, let alone the actual traveling hubub.
I truely hope they are all making at least 50 grand a year take-home.
DSO definitely has one up on me on committment to travel, and their Bobby guy is a much better Bobby performer (look and body language) than any other Bobby guy i've ever seen.
There's plenty of reasons why I wouldn't be a good fit for that band, but I don't think guitar chops is one of them.

You might be right on Rob Eaton but I'm not 100% convinced it's a conscious (sp) thing as much as it's just who he is. Their mannerism never really stood out to me as much as the spot on vocals and playing

They actually might "copy" the equipment in terms of trying for the same sounds, but not so much as far as using identical gear. Notice they don't do anything to discourage this myth or other less-than-accurate reportage though... keep the legend alive is the name of the game

Sure they built a Beam (maybe the ultimate piece of tribute gear)... but John doesn't use any Irwin replicas for example; uses different guitars, preamps, power amps, delays (OK he did recently start using his JBL 3x12 again) ... the bass rig is very different, Eaton's rig is different, although the HT cabs he started on a couple years ago are pretty close to Weir's 70s rig. All in all. they don't seem nearly as gear-obsessed as many of us on rukinders and Gearheads.

RETURN wrote:
You might be right on Rob Eaton but I'm not 100% convinced it's a conscious (sp) thing as much as it's just who he is. Their mannerism never really stood out to me as much as the spot on vocals and playing

I thought I read on this board somewhere that he was an award winning actor. Anyone???
Again, I have no problem with DSO in any way. I love Dead Tribute Bands and Jerry guys in general.
I go to see as many Jerry guys as I can, and pretty much always learn some new take on something that I can work into my own playing. I even stole a Rob Eaton lick once .

I saw the GD/JGB for a combined 50 shows and never had any interest, whatsoever in a cover band.

One night a friend drags me to a DSO show, very reluctantly. I agree just for the sake of saying I tried it. (that never got me in any trouble before, hehe.) After we buy our tickets, we walk around the block for a beer. From the back of the venue we here the soundcheck. I Know You Rider it was. And it sounded horrible, extremely amateur. I look a my friend and he shrugs. We drink beer.

Well, the show starts and 1/4 way into the HalfStep I am impressed. By the time Lazy Lightning comes along I am mesmerized. To me, DSO is an absolute pleasure. At first it was a guilty pleasure, "uh, yeah. I'm gonna go see this Dead cover band, but there really pretty good......." But over the years, I have become proud of my love of these guys. And I am thankful (grateful) they exist.

They bring a level of dedication, muscianship, respect and youthful 'clean' energy to the music that I cherish that is unparalleled. And you bet your ass if I could do it, I would, and be damned proud of myself.

I am *almost* bummed that I am gonna be in Italy for 2 weeks when they swing through NW next

RETURN wrote:
You might be right on Rob Eaton but I'm not 100% convinced it's a conscious (sp) thing as much as it's just who he is. Their mannerism never really stood out to me as much as the spot on vocals and playing

I thought I read on this board somewhere that he was an award winning actor. Anyone???
Again, I have no problem with DSO in any way. I love Dead Tribute Bands and Jerry guys in general.
I go to see as many Jerry guys as I can, and pretty much always learn some new take on something that I can work into my own playing. I even stole a Rob Eaton lick once .

Award winning music producer if I'm not mistaken... Won a grammy, engineer, etc...

Let's also not forget he was a great taper for many years. And many years was seen up front.

I can only imagine if you attend hundreds of shows, sober enough to tape, up front often, you will pick up some mannerisms subconsciously.

Rob Eaton was a Deadhead in good standing.
"I probably saw about 400 shows. I didn't necessarily want to go to them all, but I didn't want to miss the one where it all came together," says the rhythm guitarist. "Everyone was there for the same reason. The music wasn't based on negativity or angst. It was positive in its message and approach, it felt good to go. You got a sense of community you didn't get anywhere else."
These days, as a member of the Dark Star Orchestra, he's bringing a taste of that experience to new and old fans of the Grateful Dead, including those coming to the Lancaster Host Resort and Conference Center on Friday.
"We don't recreate a Grateful Dead show," Eaton explains. "You can't recreate improvisational music. You can play in the same style or mindset, but you can't recreate it and you wouldn't want to. I wouldn't be here if that is what we were doing."
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Eaton had been a studio producer and engineer for about 20 years before joining the Dark Star Orchestra in 1999. (He worked with a lot of big names, including George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Madonna, Pat Methany and Jimmy Buffet.)
The band got its start in Chicago at a club called Martyr's. Guitarist John Kadlecik and keyboardist Scott Larned (who passed away in 2005) had the idea of performing the setlists of Grateful Dead shows from history and capturing their spirit.
Only 78 people showed up for the first show on Nov. 11, 1997, but word soon spread and Tuesday nights at Martyr's soon became sold-out affairs.
The band had asked Eaton a number of times to join, but he was making good money as a recording engineer/producer and he wasn't interested in performing. Playing music was for fun.
"I was very comfortable behind the glass," he says.
But the music industry changed and Eaton didn't like what was happening.
"I had just worked with Ricky Martin and it was an arduous task, I wasn't enjoying it," he says. "There was a high level of politics and BS. The band kept calling, wanting me to play. I decided to go try it. I could see the music was shifting away from music. It was all about marketing. The craft of records, of songs — people didn't really care about that anymore."
The Grateful Dead has always represented an ideal for Eaton, who grew up in Vermont. He first heard the Dead when his stepbrother gave him the album "Europe," for Christmas in 1972.
"I wasn't a guitar player at the time," he recalls. "Whatever the guitar player was doing made me want to play. It turned out to be Bob Weir. It moved me, inspired me. So I taught myself to play." (He "plays" Weir in the Dark Star Orchestra.)
He saw his first Dead show on August 6, 1974.
Meanwhile, his career got started. At 19 he moved to New York and got a job in a studio. He worked his way up to the Power Station where he became the staff engineer. Then he went independent and started traveling the world.
He won three Grammys during his career and left, he says, at the top of his game.
"It was a big deal for me," he says. "It meant cutting my salary 60 to 70 percent from what I normally made. I had to downsize, but you know, I'm much happier. It satisfies my soul."
Dark Star isn't just any old cover band. Rolling Stone calls them "Quite possibly the most talented and accomplished tribute band out there...they've definitely mastered their inspiration's vagabond nature."
And even Dead members like the band. Ryhthm guitarist Bob Weir, who has played with them several times, was quoted as saying "A couple of times when I had my back to John (Kadlecik) onstage and he started to sing, I had this weird sense that it was Jerry (Garcia)."
Their audiences include everyone from young kids to grandparents and of course, plenty of Deadheads.
"We've been playing together for many years and that is showing in the quality of the shows," Eaton says. "We play music from out heart and soul, not anything else. That's what it's all about. A pure form of joy. The energy, the emotion, it's very powerful. If you could bottle it, you'd be a zillionaire."

strumminsix wrote:
Award winning music producer if I'm not mistaken... Won a grammy, engineer, etc...

That's cool, but not what i was thinking of...
I thought I read somewhwere he had a "Reel Award" for his role as Bobby.
'Love his stuff on Archive for sure!

I just got back from buying tix for Bill Kreutzman Trio, DSO (which I will turn over to a currently out of work drummer friend if I somehow get a pass), and Steve Kimmock, all coming soon to Portland.
Cool.

Man, they put on a hell of a show last night in Atlanta! It was my first time seeing them.They played an original setlist I think. The second set was absolutely phenomenal. After the drums segment they strung together 3 or 4 of the odd-meter tunes, jamming through it all beautifully. I was skeptical but I think they really do service to the music.

I've always had a good experience at DSO shows tho the ticket prices are out of line. I've seen them less than 10 times but always had fun. I doubt I'd go again unless it was a package deal at a festival or something.

My third favorite was DSO as Vasa Park in NJ this past summer. Amazing playing and set list. One of my happiest days ever. New Years 2008 in Baltimore was magical.

The Philharmonic is a cover band. No cover band, no Mozart. We are lucky to have DSO and other cover bands like Splintered Sunlight keeping the music alive. Remembering Jerry, to paraprhrase the Bard (Hamlet), is literaly putting members of a band together to play the music.

I've said it elsewhere on this forum, to some criticism, that DSO is much better than that band that showed up at the Obama benefit. I love Bobby, Phil, Mickey, and Bill, but that show sounded horrible. I respectfully say, If you want to hear the Grateful Dead live, GO to DSO.

both of the first two nights were amazing. 2/3/79 and 3/29/87, gettin to the vic in chicago was so bad tho, torrential downpour and parked like 2 miles away in the freezign cold, now i am really sick but it was all worth it.

Comes a time, when the blind man takes your hand and says "dont you see?"